Porsche patent locks top speed to hands at 3 and 9 o'clock
Porsche Top Speed Mode: full power only with a 3-and-9 grip
Porsche patent locks top speed to hands at 3 and 9 o'clock
Porsche’s patent outlines a Top Speed Mode that unlocks full performance only with a 3 and 9 o'clock grip, using steering wheel sensors to verify control.
2025-11-23T06:48:41+03:00
2025-11-23T06:48:41+03:00
2025-11-23T06:48:41+03:00
Porsche has found an unconventional answer to a familiar problem: how to protect inexperienced drivers from a car’s own power. A new patent describes a Top Speed Mode that unlocks the vehicle’s full potential only when the driver’s hands are held strictly at the 3 and 9 o’clock position.Unlike systems linked to autopilot functions, this technology doesn’t just check that hands are on the wheel—it verifies a proper grip. Porsche’s idea is that this stance provides maximum control in high‑energy driving. If the hands drift, the system limits speed—down to 80–130 km/h on autobahns. Remove one hand and the mode warns the driver and switches off.The concept echoes the brand’s Wet Mode, but here the algorithm monitors the driver rather than the road. To work, it relies on pressure or capacitive sensors in the steering wheel and driver-state monitoring.The system is aimed at those who buy a powerful sports car for the image yet lack the experience to match. In effect, Porsche is proposing an electronic smart limiter that engages only when the driver demonstrates basic car-control skills.For seasoned owners, one thing matters: the feature should stay invisible and never get in the way of those who understand what a Porsche can do and know how to use it. Still, the core idea—encouraging the driver to stay involved instead of leaning on electronics—feels sound in the age of ultra-powerful cars, coming across less as nannying and more as a disciplined prompt to hold the wheel the right way.
Porsche’s patent outlines a Top Speed Mode that unlocks full performance only with a 3 and 9 o'clock grip, using steering wheel sensors to verify control.
Michael Powers, Editor
Porsche has found an unconventional answer to a familiar problem: how to protect inexperienced drivers from a car’s own power. A new patent describes a Top Speed Mode that unlocks the vehicle’s full potential only when the driver’s hands are held strictly at the 3 and 9 o’clock position.
Unlike systems linked to autopilot functions, this technology doesn’t just check that hands are on the wheel—it verifies a proper grip. Porsche’s idea is that this stance provides maximum control in high‑energy driving. If the hands drift, the system limits speed—down to 80–130 km/h on autobahns. Remove one hand and the mode warns the driver and switches off.
The concept echoes the brand’s Wet Mode, but here the algorithm monitors the driver rather than the road. To work, it relies on pressure or capacitive sensors in the steering wheel and driver-state monitoring.
The system is aimed at those who buy a powerful sports car for the image yet lack the experience to match. In effect, Porsche is proposing an electronic smart limiter that engages only when the driver demonstrates basic car-control skills.
For seasoned owners, one thing matters: the feature should stay invisible and never get in the way of those who understand what a Porsche can do and know how to use it. Still, the core idea—encouraging the driver to stay involved instead of leaning on electronics—feels sound in the age of ultra-powerful cars, coming across less as nannying and more as a disciplined prompt to hold the wheel the right way.
